John Doe
by justanoutlaw
Summary: Roni hates hospitals and yet, she finds herself visiting a coma patient once a day for 2 years.


Hospitals are depressing. They smell weird. They're painted that off shade of white that look in desperate need of a repaint. Most of all, they remind her of where a baby had placed in her arms. A baby she had ultimately not been allowed to keep. In just months, a social worker would show up at the loft above her bar and tell her that they decided her that she wasn't a "good fit" and take him away. It didn't matter that she was all he knew or that he was all that kept her together, they ripped him from her arms.

So, Roni avoided hospitals as much as possible. She admittedly didn't visit her sister when she got her appendix taken out. She sent flowers when Margot needed surgery on her ankle. She nearly passed out from the flu when she got it from one of her busboys.

Yet, there she was, walking down the hall towards the coma ward. She pushed out the thoughts of the squirming baby. She didn't allow the wound to re-open, no matter how hard Lucy tried to pull at it by insisting that Henry was her son. She didn't want to think about it, not then.

She turned into the ward, flashing her visitor's badge. Roni walked right into Room 315, sitting by the bed where John Doe lay. The machines were still hooked up to him, that damn plastic tube through his nose. His dark blonde hair had been clearly combed by the nurses while his green hospital gown was wrinkled. Roni took his hand into her own, her hand going over the bandage that held the fresh IV into place.

"Hey there, stranger," she whispered. "Sorry it's been a bit. Things have been a bit crazy."

Roni knew it was weird to keep coming back to this man. She didn't know him and yet, she felt a strange connection. If she had just taken a different route home on her way back from the store, she never would've found his body. The doctors say that he had suffered head trauma and the coma was helping him recover. They didn't know when he'd wake up, if ever.

She reached into her bag and pulled out the book Lucy had given her. She ran her fingers over the white cover, before flipping open a bit.

"Regina begged Emma to save Robin, because she knew that she couldn't lose Robin," Roni read aloud. "She knew what it would do to the Dark One, but selfishly she didn't care. She wanted to save him, her love, her true love. She had lost so much; she couldn't imagine a world without him."

She let out a shaky breath. Roni quickly blinked, wondering why she was getting so choked up over a stupid fairytale. This wasn't her type of book, not at all. Typically, she went for Agatha Christie or Stephen King. Nonetheless, Roni continued.

"As soon as his blue eyes flickered open, it was as if no one else was in the room. They kissed ad she brought him closer to her, vowing to never let him go again."

Roni shook her head.

"Could you imagine?" She whispered. "Having a love like that?"

Before she could move onto the next sentence, she felt her hand squeeze. Her eyes drifted down and she found them connected to a pair of blue ones. She jumped, realizing that John Doe's hand was intertwined with her own. He was awake.

Holy shit, John Doe was awake.

The book fell from her grip, but she somehow couldn't let go of him. "I…you…"

"You," he whispered, hoarsely.

"I…I need to get the doctor.

Her stomach sank as she pulled her hand away from him, running out of the room and down the hall.

"Um, code…something!" She shouted. "There's a coma patient awake!"

Doctors were in and out of the man's room, while Roni lingered outside of the door. They peppered her with questions, but there wasn't much she knew. One minute, she was reading to him, the next, he was awake. After two years, she hadn't thought it was possible either.

It wasn't until the next day, that she got a call saying that she was wanted by the John Doe. She headed back to the hospital, nervous. As she approached 315, she wondered if she had the right one. The name on the door had been replaced from "Doe" to "Sherwood".

She pushed open the door and found him sitting upright, his eyes opened. That would take some getting used to, not that they weren't handsome. Roni gave him a small smile.

"Um…you wanted to see me?" She asked.

The man nodded. "I've been told you come by to see me often."

Her cheeks tinged. "I mean…I just…I found you…I feel responsible."

"I just wanted to say, thank you."

"Well, it was nothing." She stood there, awkwardly. "Do you remember anything from that night?"

"No, unfortunately. One minute I was heading home from work and the next…I was here."

Regina paused. "Sherwood…."

"I'm Oliver. Oliver Sherwood."

She had called him John Doe for so long, the name hit her ears weird. Even so, she softly smiled. "I'm Roni."

"It's nice to meet you, Roni."

"And it's…nice to be well acquainted with you, Oliver."


End file.
